Lucky Danjuma has reached the second round of the ongoing J60 Accra event in Ghana after forcing Ilia Mehrabani to retire in the final set of their match.
The Abuja-based tennis player, one of Nigeria’s bright starlets who reached the Main Draw from the qualifying rounds, lost a competitive first set 4-6 to the number seven seed before taking the second with a nervy 7-6(4) win.
Danjuma was leading 2-0 in the final set before his opponent decided that he had enough and could not continue the match, leaving the Nigerian with the passage to the next phase of the tournament.
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He will come up against Mawuko Francois-Xavier Gakpo from Togo in the second round for a place in the quarterfinal of the J60 event which served off on Monday.
Ayomiposi Agboola, the other Nigerian male player in action on Monday, 23 September, 2024, could not reenact his winning wand as he fell to India’s Gurbaaz Narang in two straight sets.
Agboola, the Lagos Country Club player, held his opponent off in the first set but was not able to do so much before losing 4-6. He could, however, not sustain the momentum in the second set, losing 1-6 and eventually losing the tie.
The girls Singles matches were more rewarding as two of the three Nigerian girls in action won their matches and proceeded to the second round.
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Etoro Bassey, the tournament’s number six seed, bageled Ghana’s Naaporka Ayidaama Akaguri 6-0, 6-0 to move into the second round just as Ekiti State’s Success Ogunjobi outplayed Abimbola Ayinla 6-1, 6-0 to set up a mouth watering encounter against Ghana’s Sisu Tomegah.
Toluwalashe Agunbiade, the third Nigerian girl in action on Monday could not do so much to stop Matila Klivia Morelle Ngo Ndje Ndjeng, her opponent from Cameroon as she fell 0-6, 2-6.
Action resumes on Tuesday at the Accra Sports Stadium, venue of the week-long competition which is featuring some of the best talents across the world.
Nigeria Tennis Live will keep tabs on the performances of the youngsters participating in the event and report to our teeming audience.